Attention B6 fans: the airline with the most legroom in coach has just upped the ante.
Starting April 1, all JetBlue flights on A320 aircraft will feature a quasi-economy plus seating product called Even More Legroom. Even More Legroom means seats in rows 2-5, plus exit rows, will offer a whopping 38" of space to stretch out in. (Only exit rows on JetBlue's E190 aircraft will qualify as "EML".) There is a bit of a catch, however. Just guess where this is going. Guess!
For your wallet, that's where! Even More Legroom seats, bookable through JetBlue's website and call center, will cost about $10-20 extra per one-way trip. We priced out a $40 total surcharge for a JFK-to-LAX round trip. JetBlue previously allowed a free race for its best seats (36" up front and 34" in the back), but no more.
Class-y? Classy? Klassy? You decide. But don't forget that 38" is what United shills in domestic First.
Indian carrier Jet Airways recently unveiled its new first class seats. The private suites (a la Emirates' cabins) will debut on Jet's 777-300ERs from Heathrow beginning in early May. Seats recline into "the world's longest" flatbeds, while additional amenities include extensive AVOD and 23-inch TV screens on which you can enjoy all that entertainment.
Our sources recently returned from India tell us that Jet Airways' domestic service is impeccable, and a quick Airline Quality scan suggests that even its long-haul economy product is unusually excellent and satisfying. As for those gorgeous private first class cabins, we're surprised Singapore Airlines didn't take the same route for their new seats, which are stylish but not private. Looks like someone's preparing to steal their thunder.
For all you SeatGuru addicts, here's a good one: seat picks for a plane you can't even touch yet. Yesterday, we told you what to expect throughout the entire Virgin America cabin. Today, we'll tell you what specific economy seats you'll be fighting to the death for once VA launches.
Your exit rows on the A320 are rows 9 and 10. The window seats are A and F; aisle seats are C and D. But those aren't the only pimp rows on the plane. As you can see our red-eyed model demonstrating above, row 3 is the place to be. We can't make any promises about it being baby-free (as kids are often assigned to bulkhead seats), so it's up to you to pray. The IFE screens are as adjustable as any others on the plane (unusual for bulkhead rows), and you get a foot rest of sorts at the bottom of the divider. You also get a peek at the beautiful people in first class.
Another important thing to know about Virgin America is that they're not even done with Red, the on-demand IFE system, yet. As you've been told before, they'll eventually start accepting submissions from Linux game developers. Once VA...eventually...launches, they're not going to give up their IFE throne easily. We saw a lot of bits and pieces of new technology being developed for the already impressive system. Now we feel like Gizmodo covering the Apple iPhone launch: unhealthily obsessed and geeked to the gills. But we can't help it.
Welcome to the Virgin America A320. Our name is Jaunted and we'll be your guide. If you're wondering how the impending launch of this value airline--so dubbed because no one's yet sure about exact pricing--will affect your travels, read on. And you should be wondering, because the legacy airlines are shaking in their boots. That's usually a good sign.
Steerage: Let's start with the coach cabin. It's a 3x3 seat configuration with mood lighting throughout the cabin. HotelChatter editor Juliana, upon viewing the above video, perfectly compared the moodily lit environment to that of a tanning bed. This is too, too true, but we liked it and actually found it relaxing. The lighting will be adjusted based on the time of day you're in flight. That's a bonus if you wear contacts, which can make your eyes super light sensitive after a long red eye flight.
Not only does Lufthansa have a penchant for non-sales (in which they taut fares that are either average or even a good deal above other easy-to-find offers), but the very coach class those sales lure you to fly on has quite the sour reputation. We've been hearing bad things about Lufthansa's transatlantic steerage for a while, and sadly, the negative reviews are still rolling in:
A flight from Chicago to Johannesburg: ORD-FRA-JNB economy. How is Lufthansa rated a 4 star airline? Both flights on old Boeing 747's with IFE that dated back to the 80's. The TV screens in the aisles didn't even display the right colors. The seats were extremely uncomfortable and on the FRA-JNB leg I could feel the metal bars underneath me.
A flight from Munich to San Francisco: Airbus from Munich to SFO - newer plane with the least comfortable seats we have ever encountered - thin cushions, no leg room and very narrow seats. The person in front of me had to have assistance to leave her seat because there was no way to get out of the aisle seat without climbing over the arm rest - there literally was not enough room to stand up in front of the seat.
So, there's your warning. Now that Connexion by Boeing is dead, you won't even have the internets to keep your mind off the shooting pain in your legs. Lufthansa's new business class looks nice, but it's still not rolled out across the entire fleet.
We've been waiting for the Silverjet reviews to flood in at Airlinequality.com, but so far, there's just one lonely paragraph there. In the meantime, we have Susan d'Arcy's exclusive tour for the Times UK. D'Arcy was the only journalist invited aboard Silverjet's inaugural flight from Luton to Newark (or London to New York, if you want it to sound sexy), and wrote up and videotaped her experiences for the paper. The only downside is that d'Arcy can't comment on what it would feel like to be paying for the journey, but her evaluation is still thorough and useful. Plus, her video tour is the second most relaxing since Ogilvie hit the scene.
As we suspected, Silverjet, the latest all-business class transatlantic airline, falls below Eos but above MAXjet on the quality scale. Of course, Silverjet is also cheaper than Eos, so the balance between price and amenities depends on personal preference. As d'Arcy's video shows, Silverjet's pods are not fully flat beds, but angled flat seats, though their sketchy marketing might leave you to believe otherwise. Promising-looking perks included Silverjet's shiny dedicated terminal at Luton, edible food, and service that d'Arcy praises as "refreshingly sassy" and "bistro-sleek."
She also ran into Kaiser Chiefs front man Ricky Wilson onboard, so make of that what you will. Silverjet has plans to expand to South Africa, China, the Caribbean and beyond.
We have a ball riffing on the Sunday Times, but we only kid because we love. Well, usually. We're into anyone who publishes the exploits of frugal traveler and Jaunted crush Matt Gross. But boy did the Grey Lady miss the mark this week.
The Q&A with Richard Collis about how to get the best seats on a long-haul went way off the reservation. Seems like a good subject, until you realize that the Times is endorsing a reader's tip to buy three adjoining seats and then use the real estate to lay down flat. The thinking is that even three coach seats are cheaper than a biz class ticket.
You'll have to call your airline of choice for the best shot at this set-up. The article does mention that airlines could shift around seat assignments, leaving you with three seats scattered around the aircraft. If you buy multiple seats, you also run the risk of losing one or both to overbooking. (Your vacant seat would likely be the first to be given up.) The one thing the piece doesn't address is how to not look like a complete jerk while taking up three seats. We're thinking it can't be done.
Ever felt crowded in an economy seat? Or have you, instead, said to the flight attendant, "Hey, why don't you get the airline to fit a few more seats in back here?" Whichever your opinion (!), Finnair's announced that it's ordered a "new light seating structure" that will enable it to fit in 15 extra seats in an Airbus A320. Try this on for an oxymoron:
The Recaro Slimline CL3510 seating model uses new technology ... making it possible to maintain plentiful leg room even though the seats are closer together.
The results will apparently be a million euros per year in savings on fuel, due to the lighter weight, and a 5% increase in capacity. And a bunch of new passengers who are happy to be sitting closer to each other?
